Anzhi Makhachkala defender subjected to racism in Russia Premier League game

Chris Samba, the former Blackburn Rovers FC player and SRtRC Honorary Patron said he was "very upset that such misconduct took place in view of children who were sitting on those very stands," after a Lokomtiv Moscow supporter threw a banana at him on Sunday.

He went on to say that, "It can serve as a bad example for them. I try not to think about racism. I just want to believe that such problems do not exist on a global basis. Maybe I am mistaken but I do want to believe in it. As a rule any scandal of this kind is a result of a misconduct committed by one silly person. I don't want to react to this."

This was Chris's third game for his new club having joined in February. Unfortunately, Russian football continues to have problems with racism.

Since joining Anzhi Makhachkala, Roberto Carlos has twice had racism on the pitch from supporters. Both incidents involved bananas.

Last season Lokomotiv Moscow fans held a banner aimed at West Brom striker Peter Osaze Odemwingie after the Baggies bought him from Lokomotiv. The banner said "Thanks West Brom" next to a picture of a banana.

At the time the Director General of the Russian Football Union, Alexei Sorokin said in Russia 'to get a banana' means 'to fail a test somewhere'.

Peter Odemwingie certainly felt that the banner was racist saying at the time,

"Coloured players feel the open racism there and I recall a game against CSKA Moscow when their fans started the sick noises (monkey chants) - I wouldn't have any of it and gave it back to them."

"This was widely publicised because photographers had shots of my protest but still nothing was done to curb it. Sadly, it's a picture of a minority group in Russia - it really makes you feel sick but that is what it is."

Alexei Sorokin is now CEO of the organising committee for the Russia 2018 World Cup.

Dr Rafal Pankowski of the East European Monitoring Centre said in an interview with The Guardian (Aug 2011) that RFU has downplayed racist chants and far right activity in the stadiums.

"There is hardly any acknowledgement of racism either inside or outside the grounds by the government and football authorities in Russia, and there is a pattern of denial when the problem is raised.

"Nazi slogans are common in many Russian stadiums. Matches are often interrupted with racist chants aimed at black players," he said.

"I have been in Moscow this week and seen it for myself. There is racist graffiti in the streets. Major bookshops openly sell racist literature. The hate-crime rate is high. Black people are often beaten up by skinhead gangs," he added.

Statistics from the monitoring centre show that 80 people were murdered in 2010 and another 411 wounded. Most of these attacks were racist incidents.

More than 150 far-right groups with an ideology of racial, ethnic and religious intolerance are currently active in Russia, according to the interior ministry.

Attacks against foreigners have increased in recent years and are often committed by skinheads. They usually target people from the Caucasus and ex-Soviet republics in central Asia, as well as Asians and Africans.